Book 3

Chapter 143 - Trail of Bugs

The demolished cabin quickly disappeared out of sight as the pair ventured into the wilderness. Before long they were deep in the woods, far from any trail.

The forest grew more dense and wild as they traveled, filled with thick drooping vines and wide variety of leafy plants. Strange sounds filled the woods - chitters and whistles from unseen birds and insects, the rustle of wind through the lush and thick forest canopy.

Indeed, this could not be considered a forest any longer. The unnatural growth had well and truly transformed it into a jungle.

Finn led the way, trekking confidently through the thick underbrush. At times he would take out his steel baton and beat his way through the vines and foliage blocking their way, but for the most part he chose a path that was clear of obstructions.

Edwin followed behind him in nervous silence. The bald, athletically built teenager looked out of place in the jungle, dressed in casual slacks and a loosely fitting shirt. He continuously scanned their surroundings, his enhanced night vision letting him see in the dim moonlight as if it were day. Despite this advantage, he couldn’t see farther than several meters into the jungle’s thick underbrush.

“W-where are we going?” He finally asked in a hoarse whisper.

“There’s a trail.” Finn replied softly, pointing to a spot on the floor in front of them, “See. Someone came through here in a hurry.”

Edwin looked at the place that Finn was pointing to. Indeed, the dirt was upturned and there was clear signs that something had come through here. It appeared like the plants had been shifted and twisted to make way for a person or creature.

“A-amazing, I didn’t even notice.” Edwin said in awe.

Even after having it pointed out to him Edwin couldn’t confidently say that he would have been able to notice the trail, even if he had been told about it beforehand. Furthermore, he had perfect night vision. The light of the moon was so dim that the details that Finn was pointing out would be impossible for a regular person.

Edwin’s impression of Finn was now firmly cemented in his mind. The officer had to be an Exalted, and furthermore a powerful one.

Edwin’s nerves calmed significantly after coming to this realization. No matter what danger was present at the end of this mysterious trail, he was now confident that Officer Finn would be able to handle it.

“The ground is starting to slope. The trail is heading into that valley over there.” Finn pointed to a break in the trees ahead, “You have spiritual vision, yes? Make sure you’re looking out for anything suspicious.”

“Okay.” Edwin nodded, suddenly embarrassed. He hadn’t even activated his spiritual vision yet, the thought hadn’t occurred to him.

Is this why Finn brought me with him? He was aware of my powers and recruited me specifically for my abilities. Edwin felt enlightened.

The world shimmered softly with saturated red and blue hues as Edwin activated his spiritual vision. These colours quite vivid and active in humans, less so in living creatures, and only barely present in plants. In addition, beings that purely existed in the spirit world also caused fluctuations in the colours.

It wasn’t that Edwin could see illusory forms of spirits and ghosts floating in the air, though. Edwin’s spiritual sight was not sensitive or developed enough for that kind of clarity. Still, if there were a powerful spirit around he would be able to see it.

“I don’t see anything suspicious.” Edwin said softly, “But the valley is rich in spiritual energy. We should be careful.”

Finn nodded, not saying more as he continued to lead the way.

Throughout the journey Finn had a quiet, calm expression as he navigated the jungle, but truthfully speaking he was a mess. Forcing himself to remain calm was the best he could do to keep himself from completely breaking down.

It was the shapes in the shadows that were driving him forward.

Finn was aware of the lofty impression that Edwin had of him. After all, he had carefully and deliberately developed it piece by piece. He built the image through his confident demeanour, vague hints and displays of knowledge that hinted at a greater understanding of the world than he truly had.

Edwin was relying on him for leadership with a strong impression of Finn’s true strength, but the reality was that Finn was dependent on the juvenile monk for protection. If Finn had a choice he wouldn’t have relied on the kid in this way. He’d much rather have recruited Exalted officers and seasoned fighters to be by his side... but he had to work with what he had.

From the time that they had left the cabin to now, Finn had been effectively blind in the darkness. The thick leafy canopy above blocked out nearly all of the moon’s light. It wasn’t pure darkness - Finn could see a short distance in front of him, saving him from stumbling and running into things - but he did not have the slightest clue where he was going.

He only knew that he was following the shapes in the shadows.

They spilled out of the darkness, squirming and writhing like insects and worms. In the city they had been sluggish, hiding in the shadows, idly shifting in his periphery, but once he reached the cabin they came out in droves.

There were long, segmented centipedes with oversized mandibles, hard shelled beetles, worms with long oily hair that dragged behind them in clumps. They skittered and swarmed around each other, moving as if they were part of a single hive. The sound of their movements whispered in his ear, ebbing and flowing like water.

The more Finn focused on them, the more real they appeared, the more he fell into their trance.

They were leading him somewhere. Somewhere important. The whispers told him so.

The view ahead cleared up suddenly as they approached the edge of a cliff. The crescent moon illuminated a shadowed, rocky valley. It was nothing special, a small indent in the endless jungle landscape.

A thick endless stream of shadow insects lead the way down the side of the cliff, disappearing into the canopy below.

When they had descended halfway down the cliff, Edwin caught Finn’s attention.

“Those plants are weird, I have a bad feeling about them.” Edwin said, pointing ahead of them. There was a fuzzy looking cactus standing in solitude in the thick of the forest. It did not look particularly out of place with his night vision, but in his spiritual vision it had an intense shade of red. The red colour went down into its roots, where it traveled in a line to another cactus further away.

His intuition told him that it would be best to stay away from them.

Finn frowned, not able to see the cacti in the darkness, but he didn’t doubt the monk’s warning. The line of insects carried on, obliviously passing by the cacti.

“We need to head that way.” Finn said, “Can you take us there while avoiding those plants?”

“I’ll try.” Edwin nodded, inhaling deeply as took the lead for the first time.

In a slow, careful fashion the pair descended into the valley. Edwin kept a wide radius around the cacti. There weren’t too many of them, but it somehow seemed like they were placed on the paths that were easiest to travel.

It was a difficult climb down and they had to back track several times, but eventually they arrived at the base of a rocky cliff near the bottom of the valley. Long, trailing vines and leafy bushes hung down the smooth grey rock face. They were on a small plateau, two metres wide, with the rock wall on their right and a sheer cliff to their left. The plateau ended not too far ahead.

Finn pointed toward a spot several metres away, saying softly, “We need to go that way.”

“Where?” Edwin’s brow knit in confusion, “Off the cliff?”

Finn shook his head. The stream of shadow insects, which had lead them this far, traveled down the plateau and then took a sharp right, seemingly heading into the bush-covered wall. Of course, he couldn’t say that so he simply remarked, “The wall.”

Edwin glanced at Finn for a second, not understanding, before turning his attention to the wall pointed out by Finn. After a moment he blinked, looking surprised, whispering, “You’re right! There’s something in there!”

“In the wall?” Finn asked, instinctively moving to the wall on his right to take cover among the hanging vines.

“Yes.” Edwin said, following suit, “It’s faint... but I can see some spiritual energy within the wall.”

“That’s what we’re looking for.” Finn replied, “Can you make out if it’s a person or multiple people?”

“N-no...” Edwin squinted his eyes, “It’s really faint... But I think if it is a person then he’s lying down, because the blob of colour is spread out on the ground.”

Finn digested the information for a moment before nodding, making up his mind, “We need to get in there.”

Given the time of night, it was highly likely that this ‘lying down person’ was sleeping. If so, then they had a huge element of surprise on their side. If that person was an Exalted, this might be their best chance to take the upper hand if they ended up being dangerous.

Finn unholstered his pistol and nodded at Edwin to follow. The young monk swallowed hard as he watched the older officer slowly walk down the plateau.

Edwin pulled out a silver chain with a bladed tip at the end, carefully nestling the chains in his clammy hands.

After twenty paces Finn reached an overgrown section of the wall, where the shadow insects were pouring into the vegetation in a thick, unending stream. He reached forward and parted the vines, revealing a narrow opening in the rock.

Placing his finger on the trigger, Finn stepped decisively into the dark narrow cave.